A Triad Strategy for Improving the African-American Nursing Student Experience: A Quality Improvement Project

Bell, Jennifer N.

Jennifer N. Bell DNP, APRN, FNP-BC

Abstract

Title: A Triad Strategy for Improving the African-American Nursing Student Experience:

A Quality Improvement Project

Background/Significance of Problem: There are 3,063,162 licensed registered nurses in the United States, of that number there are 165,352 Black (non-Hispanic nurses). That equates to only 5.4% of all registered nurses in the country (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2010). It is clear we must focus our attention on producing competent nurses with ethnically diverse backgrounds. There needs to be increased effort to ensure African American nursing students are supported in educational pathways to success.

Methods and Procedures: All enrolled African-American nursing students (in the first level) were solicited to participate in a program focusing on exploring their perception of the nursing school experience. The students were involved in three interventions and invited to provide feedback via focus group at completion of the interventions and project. Data and feedback from the focus group underwent a two part analysis. Nine categories were identified from the analysis, which resulted in three overarching themes.

Findings/Results: The students reported comments ranging from perceptions of racism in the nursing program to not feeling comfortable approaching non-minority and minority faculty. Themes extracted include: 1) An evident need for programs that specific to the African-American nursing student to extract their individual perceived experiences, 2) All faculty members need to make it a priority to be educated on the student population they serve, as it concerns cultural norms, social perceptions and perceived barriers to success, and 3) Having mentors and community professionals of the same ethnicity in the field of nursing can have resounding positive effects.

Conclusion: The resounding resolve of this quality improvement project emit there are ways to successfully foster an environment aimed toward success for the African-American nursing student and contribute to graduating a diverse student nurse population.